Assuming the Mission in a Critical Situation — Bravery in the Face of Difficulty — The Story of How an Alphenix System Started Operation at The People’s Hospital of Tonghua City in Jilin Province
In mid-March 2022, Jilin Province in China experienced a surge in coronavirus infections. In Tonghua City, which is located in the southern part of the province and shares borders with Liaoning Province and North Korea, emergency measures were taken to isolate persons who were close contacts of infected people.
Since the spread of COVID-19, The People’s Hospital of Tonghua City has been solely responsible for providing medical services to all non-COVID-19 patients in Tonghua City and its adjacent areas. This is because Tonghua Central Hospital, located in the same area, has become the designated medical facility for COVID-19 patients. Under these circumstances, a Canon Angiography system was scheduled to be installed at the Hospital.
Mr.Du Lizhong and Mr. Tao Hongwei arrived at The People’s Hospital of Tonghua City to install the new Alphenix Angiography system. Which is used for cardiac operations, peripheral vascular interventional procedures, neuro interventional procedures, and diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular diseases.
Since the spread of COVID-19, The People’s Hospital of Tonghua City has been solely responsible for providing medical services to all non-COVID-19 patients in Tonghua City and its adjacent areas. This is because Tonghua Central Hospital, located in the same area, has become the designated medical facility for COVID-19 patients. Under these circumstances, a Canon Angiography system was scheduled to be installed at the Hospital.
Mr.Du Lizhong and Mr. Tao Hongwei arrived at The People’s Hospital of Tonghua City to install the new Alphenix Angiography system. Which is used for cardiac operations, peripheral vascular interventional procedures, neuro interventional procedures, and diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular diseases.
Installation is finally finished! (Completion date: March 29, 2022) Left to right: Mr.Du Lizhong, Dr. Wang Xu of the People’s Hospital of Tonghua City, Mr. Tao Hongwei
On March 13, the system arrived at the Hospital amid heavy snowfall, and Mr. Du and Mr. Tao unloaded the system with the help of a logistics operator.
The installation work began on March 15, but auxiliary equipment necessary for the installation of the system had not arrived yet due to the COVID-19 lockdown. Despite this, the two engineers began their work with the firm determination that the work should not be delayed, and the system should be in operation as soon as possible.
The installation work began on March 15, but auxiliary equipment necessary for the installation of the system had not arrived yet due to the COVID-19 lockdown. Despite this, the two engineers began their work with the firm determination that the work should not be delayed, and the system should be in operation as soon as possible.
"There are only two of us, but we are a team!"
The two men overcame difficulties together
Test operation of the system finally began
The installation of Angiography systems requires careful attention to detail. However the installation schedule requested by the Hospital was very tight, so Mr. Du and Mr. Tao proceeded without wasting a single moment.
The COVID-19 situation became even more severe. Borders between the regions in the entire Jilin Province were closed, so the engineers in charge of installation of the peripheral devices were not able to go to the Hospital. The installation of peripheral devices to an operating room for interventional procedures requires special expertise. It is difficult for local engineers to install them by themselves, but Mr. Du and Mr. Tao did not give up! They got in touch with the expert engineers and received remote instructions from them. As a result of this effort, they were able to successfully complete the installation of the peripheral devices.
There were also other challenges caused by the policy response to COVID-19. Hotels in Tonghua City were designated as isolation facilities for close contacts of infected people, so Mr. Du and Mr. Tao had to stay 30 kilometers away from the Hospital. For almost a month, they spent over an hour each way commuting to the Hospital. Despite this, they stayed on task and maintained the belief that "hard work pays off".
On March 29, they finally completed the installation, and test operation of the system began on April 7.
The COVID-19 situation became even more severe. Borders between the regions in the entire Jilin Province were closed, so the engineers in charge of installation of the peripheral devices were not able to go to the Hospital. The installation of peripheral devices to an operating room for interventional procedures requires special expertise. It is difficult for local engineers to install them by themselves, but Mr. Du and Mr. Tao did not give up! They got in touch with the expert engineers and received remote instructions from them. As a result of this effort, they were able to successfully complete the installation of the peripheral devices.
There were also other challenges caused by the policy response to COVID-19. Hotels in Tonghua City were designated as isolation facilities for close contacts of infected people, so Mr. Du and Mr. Tao had to stay 30 kilometers away from the Hospital. For almost a month, they spent over an hour each way commuting to the Hospital. Despite this, they stayed on task and maintained the belief that "hard work pays off".
On March 29, they finally completed the installation, and test operation of the system began on April 7.
Test operation of the system finally began
The much-anticipated Alphenix system. How did test operation turn out?
Since the spread of COVID-19, The People’s Hospital of Tonghua City has been responsible for the diagnosis and treatment of all non-COVID-19 patients in Tonghua City and its adjacent areas. Because of this situation, the existing system (one of our previous systems) had been used heavily. So the Alphenix system was highly anticipated and attracted much attention. The senior management of Tonghua City's health committee, which oversees the medical system in the city and adjacent areas, gave high priority to the installation and operation of the system, and cooperated closely with the Hospital’s executives and the medical staff from each clinical department.
As expected, the Alphenix system started operating successfully and exhibited excellent image quality. The burden on the existing system was quickly reduced after installation of the new system, and interventional procedures could now be performed more smoothly. Mr. Du and Mr. Tao proudly told us, "The hospital originally planned to use the Alphenix system for an operation to check its performance, but they changed their plan and decided to use the system for four emergency operations because the system was operating successfully in all aspects and the images were excellent." The functionality of the system received high praise from the Hospital staff. Furthermore, the two engineers received an award from the Hospital for their efforts in installing and operating the system.
Medical staff watching the test operation of the system with keen interest
"Customer first, life first." Competition to save lives
Installation procedures for Angiography systems, from arrival and unloading of cargo to test operation, usually take about half a month to complete. This time however, it took 10 or more extra days to finish the installation work due to the many challenges. We asked Mr. Du and Mr. Tao, "You have not seen your family for almost a month. How do you feel?" Mr. Du replied on Mr. Tao’s behalf with humor, "Mr. Tao's kid is only one and a half years old and soon will not remember him." Then Mr. Du explained with a smile, "I am an experienced engineer with over 20 years of experience. I regularly make phone calls and video calls to my family while on business trips, they are already used to it." (After this, Mr. Du may have to isolate again for the third time. If so, when will he be able to return home?) The two engineers further commented:
We must ensure that our systems operate normally. Our job is like a competition to save lives. Many healthcare professionals are using our systems every day to save lives despite the spread of COVID-19 or the occurrence of a sudden flood. This means that our responsibility is great. We are on the front line to ensure stable and normal operation of the systems for healthcare professionals and patients! Even if we face a critical situation again in the future, we will do our best for our users and for society without hesitation.
(Mr.Du Lizhong returned safely to his home in Shenyang on April 10, 2022. Mr. Tao Hongwei returned safely to his home in Zhengzhou on April 16, 2022.)
We must ensure that our systems operate normally. Our job is like a competition to save lives. Many healthcare professionals are using our systems every day to save lives despite the spread of COVID-19 or the occurrence of a sudden flood. This means that our responsibility is great. We are on the front line to ensure stable and normal operation of the systems for healthcare professionals and patients! Even if we face a critical situation again in the future, we will do our best for our users and for society without hesitation.
(Mr.Du Lizhong returned safely to his home in Shenyang on April 10, 2022. Mr. Tao Hongwei returned safely to his home in Zhengzhou on April 16, 2022.)
Conclusion
Mr. Du and Mr. Tao are typical examples of Canon Medical Systems staff, and many of our colleagues are also working at the forefront of medical care. They are just like Mr. Du and Mr. Tao, sometimes they have to sacrifice time with their families, but they are working in critical situations and contributing to the company which is like a large family for us. They sometimes talk enthusiastically about our systems, but they rarely talk about the difficulties they experience. They are aware that it is their responsibility to deal with such difficulties.
It is our important mission to ensure timely delivery of services to our users. To achieve this mission, Canon Medical Systems engineers assume the responsibility to stand at the front line. We would like to express our sincere respect to all of our colleagues and the medical professionals who are working at the forefront of medical care. //
It is our important mission to ensure timely delivery of services to our users. To achieve this mission, Canon Medical Systems engineers assume the responsibility to stand at the front line. We would like to express our sincere respect to all of our colleagues and the medical professionals who are working at the forefront of medical care. //
July 14, 2022 CMC / Vascular Systems Marketing and Promotion Department / International Sales Division, China group
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